A successful example of public-private partnerships was announced today as part of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).  The Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator at the State Department will be collaborating with the American medical technology company Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) to operate an initiative called Labs for Life.

The purpose of this new $20 million project would be to help strengthen healthcare and laboratory systems in the developing world. The program will be present in countries such as Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Mozambique, with the hope of expanding into India.

This is not the first time that BD has partnered with PEPFAR on an initiative to help defeat AIDS.  Both entities previously cooperated on improving laboratory systems in sub-Saharan African countries that were ravaged by HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.  The previous partnership achieved wide-ranging results as countries that participated in this capacity-building improved the quality of services to local populations and become regional areas of excellence in defeating AIDS in Africa.

The public-private cooperation between PEPFAR and BD is another positive example that can be measured by the lives that are saved through their collaboration.  With the backdrop of the AIDS conference in Washington this week, this partnership is another example of American taxpayers getting a return on their investment in the global fight to eradicate the scourge of AIDS.